U.S. authorities made about 700 arrests on the Canadian border in November, down from 1,283 in October, according to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection official who spoke on condition of anonymity because the figures are preliminary and not made public.
Last week, Trump promised sweeping new tariffs on Mexico and Canada, as well as China, as soon as he takes office as part of his effort to combat illegal immigration and drugs. He railed against an influx of migrants entering the U.S. illegally, eliciting a sharp response from President Claudia Sheinbaum of Mexico, who highlighted the steep drop this year.
U.S. arrests on the Mexican border fell by about half after Mexican authorities increased enforcement within their own borders in December, then plunged by about half again after the Biden administration introduced severe restrictions on seeking asylum at the border.
The November tally was down 16% from 56,530 in October and the lowest mark since July 2020, when there were 38,536 arrests. It was also below each month from October 2018 to August 2019, during Trump's first term as president.